Ahhhh, I’m exhausted. It’s been one of those really busy social days. After a late night at the theatre, I woke at about eleven o’clock this morning and had to make my way almost straight away to meet. Our plan was to go to the Food & Wine Fair in Hyde Park and then head off to the Sydney Theatre Company Open Day.
It’s been a few years since I’ve been to the Food & Wine Fair. I stopped going when it became too crowded. But since they’ve managed to spread everything out a bit further around the park, it’s now much more pleasant. It was still near impossible to find somewhere to sit down, but much better than it used to be.
“Shall we have a glass of wine to go with it?”, Colin asked as we purchased some food, a yummy crab salad from Jimmy Liks. “Well it is for charity”, I replied with a smile. I’ve never been to Jimmy Liks before, but on the basis of the salad, I’m gonna head off their sometime soon. Very nice.
And then we wandered through town across to Hickson Road for the first-ever Sydney Theatre Company Open Day. It was really terrific to go behind the scenes. “I can’t believe how much space there is”, I said to Colin at one point, as wandered through those areas you never get to see ordinarily. And at each point we visited, we were impressed with just how friendly the staff were, genuinely showing an interest in having loads of people walk through what is normally their behind-the-scenes workplace.
We sat in for parts of two workshops. The first was a “Writers Workshop” which featured the incredibly talented Tommy Murphy who explained at one point he uses Google Alerts to keep up to date with what people are saying about his work. (Hi Tommy, I think your work is terrific!!). The second featured Andrew Upton and Cate Blanchett amongst others talking about the role and future of Sydney Theatre Company. They emphasised a new inclusiveness about the company, which I was really pleased to hear about.
Late in the afternoon I wandered home for a brief lie down and some make-up experimentation. The Other Andrew(in constume) had invited me to a Halloween Party with some friends of his. So I experimented for a while combining a bit of black and blue eye makeup to see if I could really come up with a genuine looking black-eye.
The whole concept for the outfit was that I was “The Wicked Witch Of The Western Suburbs”, though I ended up more looking like a “client” in the social-work sense of the word.
On the way there I popped in to my local pub to ask the bloke behind the bar how realistic my black-eye looked. “Pretty good”, he said, “…about two or three days old. No longer puffy, but it still looks like you’ve been in a fight”. Excellent.
The party was also excellent. Lots of people dressed in some great topical outfits. There was a “Joe Six-Pack”, and a Sarah Palin (complete with devil-like tail) and disturbingly convincing Amy Winehouse. And amongst the many people attending was MH who I chatted to briefly who came as a “Woman In Black”.
Overall, a fantastic Saturday.
Props and makeup workshop at Sydney Theatre Company
Costumes Workshop
On stage at Sydney Theatre as part of the Open Day
Halloween Pumpkin
Whaddya reckon? A career in theatre makeup or just a bad smudge?
When we saw a nearby woman on the bus with a “crew” sticker on her luggage, we knew we had made the right choice about getting to Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport. It was Sue’s last day in Stockholm, and we were considering the best way for us to get to the airport, and for me to come back.
We had three choices to make, all with their own pros and cons. The cost of a one-way ticket on the Arlanda Express (the twenty-minute high-speed rail link between Central Station and Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport is 260 SEK (currently about 38 AUD). The cost of the airport bus (Flygbussarna) (which takes about forty minutes) is 99 SEK (currently 15 AUD). The cost of using the public transport card we had already paid for was effectively nil.
Although it took us a fair bit longer to get there (compared with the express train and the bus, the public transport option takes about sixty minutes) it took us directly to the terminal we needed (Terminal 5), gave us a brief tour of the neighbouring landscape, and meant I was able to accompany Sue without exceeding my budget for the day. To catch public transport from Central Station to Arlanda, you simply get on a commuter train (pendeltåg) to Märsta, and then (at the end of the line) walk a couple of hundred metres to the bus stop and catch a 583. Although there are other options to go via Arlanda C, I think there’s an additional payment you need to make. So if you’re budget conscious and you want to find a “free” way to go to Arlanda Airport, and you’re not overly concerned about travel time, this is certainly a good option.
Australian flag jumper at NK
It’s been really great travelling with Sue over the last two and a half weeks. It’s been great to share some adventures with a friend I’ve known for over thirty years. I think she understands the “Stockholm Thing” now. The big “tourist thing” of our final day together was a visit to the Hallwyska Museet. As explained on the museum’s website
Hallwyl House at No 4 Hamngatan was built between 1893-98 to designs by Isak Gustaf Clason (1856-1930), the most renowned architect in Sweden at the time. Among his other famous works is Nordiska Museet (The Nordic Museum). Walther and Wilhelmina von Hallwyl wanted a Stockholm home built to their own specifications; Wilhelmina needed ample space for her steadily growing collections, and for Walther there was to be an office wing from which he could run the family business empire. During the years of construction, Wilhelmina kept a close watch on progress and often visited the building site. Wilhelmina always planned for the house to become a museum, and in 1920 Walther and Wilhelmina von Hallwyl donated their Stockholm mansion together with its contents to the Swedish State. The terms of the bequest stipulate that the house must remain essentially unchanged. Wilhelminas vision became a reality in 1938 when the Hallwyl Museum was first opened to the public, eight years after her death. The house has been preserved exactly as it was left, and situated among the objets d’art are personal peculiarities including a chunk of the Count’s beard and a slice of their wedding cake.
Hallwylska museetHallwylska museet
I’d visited the museum on a previous trip to Stockholm but was keen for Sue to see it also as one of the “must-do” experiences. With an interest in history and architecture, I knew it was something we would enjoy. We had previously planned to visit on a Saturday when they have an English language tour, but never quite got around to it. So we went on the Swedish language tour. I could follow a fair bit of what was being explained, as it wasn’t all that different to the English language notes provided to us. And of course, the guide spoke English, and so occasionally he would offer us an English-language aside for bits and pieces of information not covered by the notes. We both enjoyed the tour very much.
It was also a day for a bit of shopping, as Sue was keen to buy some presents for the children of a family she is visiting in Singapore on the way back to Australia. One little boy is going to be very excited when he receives a Swedish policeman’s uniform. Sadly, they didn’t come in my size or else I’d have been buying one also.
Minutes after seeing Sue off at the airport, I was back on the bus and train, and stopped in for a drink at Torget. Amusingly, they were screening Priscilla, Queen Of The Desert. It was a conversation starter with a couple of blokes I got talking to: one was Finnish, the other Swedish. Of course, they had visited Australia and we traded some anecdotes about the places they had visited. “I think more Swedes visit Australia than Australians visit Sweden”, I told them. “Don’t be so sure, a lot of Australians come to Sweden”, I was told.
After chatting for a while, a familiar face came into the bar. It was a guy I met in Stockholm three years ago, and caught up with again eighteen months ago. He’s a lovely guy called Kim who befriended me one night, and who I enjoy having great conversations. So we had a drink or two, chatted enthusiastically, I showed him some photographs I had on my phone from the last few times we’ve been out together, headed off to another bar (“They don’t say it’s a gay bar, but it is”, he told me), and then in the wee small hours of the morning, it was time to head home.
As I’m writing this, it’s Wednesday afternoon and I’ve pretty much spent the day schlepping around home. After over a month on the road, and being out and about doing something every day, I decided it was time for a simple socks and jocks day.
At some point, I need to summon up the courage to head downstairs to do some washing in the large communal laundry. Anyone who has ever lived in Sweden will be able to tell you some of the horror stories that are often associated with them. I read a terrific article the other day which mentioned the abuse and even violence that can be associated with them. The article also mentions they’re even the subject of an exhibition space at the Nordiska Museet. My favourite quote was this…
Eleonore Lund, a professional mediator, says the problem is territorial. People tend to view the laundry room as an extension of their apartment and resent any incursions or mess. Fear also plays a role. “Laundry rooms are usually located in the most remote part of the building, in a basement, with long corridors, heavy doors, and no windows. You don’t have any cellphone coverage, and no one can hear you scream,” she says.
I was reminded tonight of a lot of songs I’d almost forgotten.
Rage has been having a “wild card night” where they’ve been playing the strangest collection of songs from my early adulthood.
“Love Is The Gun” by “Blue Mercedes” was one such song, though I was more of a fan of their other minor hit,
“I Want To Be Your Property”.
I also got to see the clip for “No Clause 28” by Boy George for the first time. Having read recently about his gaol sentence for having abducted someone or something like that, it was lovely to see him in his artistic prime once again.
After spending last night with Sue – she’s gone back to Melbourne – it was a simpler night for me. Dinner, a bottle of wine and some television.
There was a Swedish/Finnish film on SBS called Forbidden Fruit (Kielletty hedelmä which I kinda enjoyed.
Having last night watched episodes of “Big Love” (about the Mormon polygamists) and “Angels In America” (also with a big Mormon sub-plot), this was also about a conservative religious group, the Laestadians (a branch of Lutheranism) in Finland.
At the heart of the film was the story of two eighteen year old women who left their small town to experience a little of life in Helsinki.
In Helsinki, they experiment with men and alcohol.
As I watched the film I also read a little about the group. And it was fascinating to see some of the themes – such as the belief of the ability to forgive each others sins – played out on screen.
There were some lovely tender moments in the film, such as when one of the girls held hands with a boy for the first time.
But by the end of the film I was still left wondering what the purpose for the film was.
Perhaps if it had been in Swedish there might have been more of a challenge for me to watch?
I’m in Newcastle all week, meeting up with some colleagues from around Australia. While some will fly in directly, and a few will drive up from Sydney, the train’s my preferred way of getting here. Although it takes almost three hours, and the trains no longer go right to Newcastle Central, I love the fact it’s pretty inexpensive, and the fact you go through the beautiful Hawkesbury area, getting quite close to the water in places, and you get to see some rather gorgeous views.
It’s been seven months since I’ve seen Kate. For the last few years, she’s been spending roughly half of each year in China. In fact, she’s been living in Beijing for most of this year year, running the Artist in Residence Program at Red Gate Gallery. She also curated a really amazing exhibition called Coming Home which featured the works of thirty-seven Australian Chinese artists.
“Do I look different?”, she asked. “Not a bit”, I told her. Though she remarked that I looked different since I’m now wearing glasses. Given how she has spent most of her year, I guess it was not surprising that we chose to catch up tonight – her first time since arriving back – at Gallery 4 at an exhibition opening called “SpeakEasy”.
Catherine Croll
Tonight’s exhibition was “Stories of Indigenous and Asian history are explored in this exhibition of contemporary Indigenous and Asian art, curated by Vernon Ah Kee and Aaron Seeto.” My favourite works included a didjeridoo in a guitar case and a series of photographs of a group of young men from Palm Island.
Along the way tonight I got to chat to some interesting artists doing interesting works. One in particular was interested in the centuries old link between Indigenous Australians and Chinese Australians. He is an artist from Melbourne who showed me his work and spoke with passionate interest about this connection. I also chatted with a film-maker who has been following him around communities in Arnhem Land. Another was interested in the psychological impact of the Cultural Revolution on Chinese artists. She too was interested in the idea of going back to China with a film crew to examine some of these issues in a truly meaningful way.
After the exhibition we joined a large group of people and feasted on a wonderful banquet of food in nearby Chinatown. Kate and I will catch up again tomorrow, checking out a few galleries together, and generally just hanging out. Kate – it’s good to have you back.
There’s a couple of people I know who are planning to spend between one or two weeks in Stockholm next year, during the months of April and May.
Based on my own experiences of being in Stockholm during that time of the year (and other times of the year), here are a few handy tips I’ve prepared for them, which you might find useful also.
Streets of Sodermalm, Stockholm
Where to stay in Stockholm: Where you choose to stay depends on a whole range of things: do you like city-life, do you like the countryside, how much you’re prepared to pay etc. My biggest best advice would be to stay near a public transport stop, especially near the subway/metro system, the Tunnelbana. You can buy affordable transport tickets that give you unlimited travel for 7 days, a fortnight or a month. When you don’t have to worry about how you get around, you spend a lot less time worrying about the dailies. And besides, trains and subways go exactly where they’re supposed to. My other piece of advice would be to make sure where you’re staying has a washing machine in your apartment. There are so many awful stories of conflict over “the washing room” in older Swedish apartment blocks, so if you’re using AirBnB, just double check the washing machine is actually in your apartment.
Personally, I really like the southern island, Södermalm. Traditionally a working class suburb, it’s now become quite fashionable. There are two things I really like about Södermalm: first, it’s a cool, funky, and interesting place to walk around; second, it’s close to the city, so you can actually walk to lots of great tourist places. You also look back over the water to the Old Town, Gamla Stan which is fantastic.
New Clothes
What Clothes To Wear: Earlier today when I was chatting with my friend and colleague who’ll be in Stockholm in mid to late April, she asked what clothes she should wear. She doesn’t want to pack too much clothing, and is concerned the warm clothing she has (she bought in New Zealand) might actually be “too warm”. Going back through my blog posts from March/April/May 2003, I noticed I needed to make a similar transition, and so went to a second-hand clothing store on Södermalm and picked up (for about $30-40) some clothing which kept me both warm and dry. Stadsmissionen is probably the best known second-hand clothing store in Stockholm, though the store I bought these clothes from was called Emmaus Stockholm just off Götgatan.
Arlanda Airport from Stockholm-Arlanda
Getting to and from Stockholm Airport (Arlanda): Of all the options you might consider – regular taxi, fast train (Arlanda Express), public transport (connecting train and bus), airport buses, I’d recommend the airport buses. For around $15-$20 AUD, it will take you roughly 45 minutes from the airport to central. This is slightly longer than catching a taxi, and twice as long as catching the Arlanda Express, but it’s much cheaper, and you get to see a little of the countryside. http://www.flygbussarna.se/EN You can buy your tickets beforehand and just show them on your phone, though noting you shouldn’t buy them too early as they can “expire”.
Getting a Swedish SIM Card: If you’re going to be in Stockholm for more than a week or so, I really think it’s worth getting yourself a Swedish SIM Card. As well as things like Google Maps, you can access email, social media, and not have to worry about international roaming. WIFI is everywhere, and Swedish homes generally have high-speed broadband, but for the sheer convenience, I think it’s worth spending about $40-50 for a casual plan which is often unlimited but usually has more than enough to do everything you’ll need. The last few times I’ve visited Stockholm, I picked up a SIM Card from 3 at a fairly reasonable price. Though the website is in Swedish, I found it was pretty simple to go into the 3 shop on Götgatan, and explain my situation. They asked me a few basic questions about usage patterns, and they even set the phone up for me.
Stockholm Rooftop Tour: I’m not sure if actually operates during April, but the rooftop tour is amazing. Stockholm is a low rise city, and you’ll see a whole lot more if you’re just above the city, not far, far away at Kaknastornet, the radio and TV transmission tower. I’d also really recommend Katarinahissen.
There are so many great galleries and museums (most of them free), but Fotografiska is my favourite. Great art, great location, and great food.
If you’re looking for a great fun night (that makes the most of the Swedish nights), I’d recommend Patricia, a boat on the water.
A ship inside a museum. The Vasa Museum in Stockholm.
Vasa Museet: A massive Swedish warship inside a museum. Amazing.
The Millenium Tour: A walking tour of Stockholm, as seen through the eyes of the books/films by Stieg Larrson.
Dr Käse at Hötorgshallen
The Nordic Experience Food Tour: Swedes eat all kinds of food, reflective of their increasingly multi-cultural society, but this tour takes you on a journey of pickled herring, bear and all kinds of great stuff.
Schlager band, Hallå Hela Pressen plays at Victoria Restaurang
Monday Night at Victoria’s: Swedes love pop music and drinking. If you’re sceptical, read the story of a guy I met who was VERY sceptical, and ended up having a great time.
Valborg bonfire in Stockholm
Valborg: A pagan festival at the end of April. Bonfires in the centre of Stockholm.
Kulturnatt: The night when galleries and museums are open during mid-April.
Walking on the frozen water of Lake Mälaren, Stockholm
Walking On Ice: Hopefully, there will still be some snow and ice around during March-April, and so long as you follow in the footsteps of others, you should feel confident about walking on ice.
Systembolaget Södermalm
Booze: Swedish bottle shops operate only 9-5 Monday to Saturday, so if you’re looking for take-away alcohol, you’ll need to plan. Supermarkets which are generally open until 10 or 11 at night, sell low-alcohol beer in case you get a little desperate.http://thelimbshift.com/2013/05/05/systembolaget-saturday/
I don’t know if it’s my television viewing habits, or if it’s the summer season, but every time I turn on Channel 9 or Gem, there seems to be an episode of “Embarrassing Illnesses” (or one of the associated spin-off programs). Are they strip programming it at the moment?
I can’t recall exactly the first time I saw one of these programs, but I suspect it was late at night and I suspect I was channel surfing looking for something, anything to watch. Click, click, click, click. And then suddenly, there was a rather cute bloke – Dr Christian Jessen – who had just asked an equally cute bloke to drop his pants. “I think I’d better take a look at your penis”, he would have said, I’m sure.
“Hang on, I might stay around on this channel and watch this for a while”, I’m sure I would have thought to myself, only to discover a few seconds later the attractive bloke had some awful condition of the “private parts”. Something not quite right. Maybe something was a little bent? Something was, maybe, a little too large or a little too small? Or perhaps he’d had some unexpected and unwelcome visitors? :)
And then again a few minutes later, there’s someone under surgery, or someone with some awful skin condition on their bum. It’s not what you would call “polite television”. It’s not something you’d expect Mel and Kochie to host, is it?
But it’s actually quite a good show both in its concept and execution. I love the way they’ve taken lots of taboo subjects and have tried to normalize them, to make it okay to talk about stuff that affects many people, but which we don’t talk about. I think it’s fantastic they’ll address medical conditions which obviously cause people deep shame, and which often results in an avoidance of medical assistance. Sure, there’s a slightly voyeuristic quality about the program, but I think it’s great that they show people with these conditions, and show there’s a potential solution.
Every time you see Dr Christian Jessen with this face, you can be sure someone he is going to ask someone to drop their pants.
I don’t quite understand how English people go on the program. I mean, they have the National Health Service which, eventually, means their condition can be dealt with. But I guess there’s a degree of individual exhibitionism going on in the UK as well as the USA. Programs like Jerry Springer would struggle to work in Australia because of the shame factor, but I guess the UK is large enough to sustain a population of people for whom that wouldn’t be an issue. Personally, I would never go on a program like this, and I would never expose my personal, private illnesses on television, and I would never – intentionally – flash my tackle on national television, even if it meant speedy, safe surgery. But some people are happy to do this, and I guess we should all be grateful for that.
The program, of course, concentrates on physical conditions. It would be interesting to see them deal with mental illness, for example, though the treatment would obviously be far more complex and long-term than chopping off a bit of foreskin (which is not a good idea at the best of times in my humble opinion), I guess.
Yes, a good show. But what’s going on right now? Why is it that every time I turn on some late night television there’s someone with some awful scabby condition on their bum? :)
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Hi James! Thanks again for coming. I didn’t make the connection at first between the name and the blog… Durrr. :)
Hi James! Thanks again for coming. I didn’t make the connection at first between the name and the blog… Durrr. :)
I wanted to go to the STC Open Day but had family responsibillities to attend to. Did you get to see Cate B and/or Andrew U?
Hi James,
It was great to meet you at the party! And yes, before you ask I’m now your official Internet stalker!
Cheers,
Reecie
Kris – thanks for the invitation (via TOA). I had an absolute hoot of a time. Really really enjoyable.
Victor – yes, we were there for the Cate/Andrew session. Really interesting stuff.
Reecie – great to meet you also. Had a hoot chatting. Ooooh an internet stalker? You might have to join a queue….